Inside Lane Community College’s ITEC Project
Twenty years ago, right around the time I first entered the construction industry fresh out of the Oregon State University, I noticed a significant shift around me. Fewer and fewer young people seemed interested in getting jobs in the trades, foreshadowing a workforce labor problem that’s only gotten worse with time.
With many skilled workers reaching retirement age, critical roles in construction, including plumbers and electricians, as well as those in most other trades, aren’t being filled fast enough by young people. Rapid technological changes have also presented skills gaps.
According to a summer 2023 survey by the Associated General Contractors of America and Autodesk, the vast majority of Oregon construction companies say they struggle to fill positions, with most firms agreeing that recruiting skilled craft workers is especially challenging.
To address this issue head-on in the South Willamette Valley, voters in Lane County passed a $121 million bond in 2020 to support vocational retraining and career technical education through enhancements to Lane County Community College. This represents the largest investment in LCC since its founding six decades ago.
The centerpiece project is the Industry and Trades Education Center, a new three-story, 55,000-square-foot workforce and advanced-technology training hub on LCC’s main campus in Eugene. LCC will begin moving equipment into the building in November and classes will begin winter term.
Designed by Hennebery Eddy Architects with input from the community, the $49.5 million ITEC project aims to challenge some of the misconceptions keeping more young people from fulfilling, living-wage jobs in the trades. This includes the idea that the conditions in industries like construction and manufacturing are necessarily dirty, dark, unsafe or that the technology they use is antiquated.
Twenty years ago, right around the time I first entered the construction industry fresh out of the Oregon State University, I noticed a significant shift around me. Fewer and fewer young people seemed interested in getting jobs in the trades, foreshadowing a workforce labor problem that’s only gotten worse with time.
With many skilled workers reaching retirement age, critical roles in construction, including plumbers and electricians, as well as those in most other trades, aren’t being filled fast enough by young people. Rapid technological changes have also presented skills gaps.
According to a summer 2023 survey by the Associated General Contractors of America and Autodesk, the vast majority of Oregon construction companies say they struggle to fill positions, with most firms agreeing that recruiting skilled craft workers is especially challenging.
To address this issue head-on in the South Willamette Valley, voters in Lane County passed a $121 million bond in 2020 to support vocational retraining and career technical education through enhancements to Lane County Community College. This represents the largest investment in LCC since its founding six decades ago.
The centerpiece project is the Industry and Trades Education Center, a new three-story, 55,000-square-foot workforce and advanced-technology training hub on LCC’s main campus in Eugene. LCC will begin moving equipment into the building in November and classes will begin winter term.
Designed by Hennebery Eddy Architects with input from the community, the $49.5 million ITEC project aims to challenge some of the misconceptions keeping more young people from fulfilling, living-wage jobs in the trades. This includes the idea that the conditions in industries like construction and manufacturing are necessarily dirty, dark, unsafe or that the technology they use is antiquated.
Our collective aim is for the students who’ll soon be training here to feel valued and appreciated, reflecting the respect they deserve within the community. Another goal is ensuring that the trades are seen as viable career options for people from traditionally disadvantaged or underrepresented communities, including people of color and women.
An aerial photo showing the south side of Lane Community College’s Industry and Trades Education Center earlier this summer.
When completed later this year, the building will host a comprehensive construction program, providing both apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship training. Additionally, it will serve as a learning hub for aspiring mechanical, engineering and plumbing professionals.
Currently, LCC’s electrical and plumbing apprentices work in separate spaces on campus. The community, LCC leaders, and project stakeholders came up with a vision to bring these trainees into a single learning environment at ITEC. By practicing side by side, apprentices can experience a more realistic workplace setting and understand how their scopes of work impact other trade partners.
ITEC will also house programs for unmanned aircraft systems and advanced manufacturing technology. Dedicated spaces will be equipped for machining and manufacturing training, focusing on future-oriented fields like automation and mechatronics. There will also be classrooms, apprenticeship training laboratories, and an interdisciplinary fabrication laboratory.
With its high-bay spaces, large pieces of equipment and materials can be brought into ITEC to better simulate the kinds of real-world environments that students can expect to encounter on the jobsite. Regardless of the field, each learning area is equipped with industry-standard equipment to simulate actual job conditions, reducing the learning curve for students when they transition into the workforce.
One of the most exciting aspects of this facility is its capacity for growth and adaptation. Flexible spaces throughout are designed to be expanded or modified to meet the evolving needs of industry and students. This ensures that LCC can accommodate future training requirements.
When students, instructors, and visitors, walk into ITEC, they’ll notice exposed mass plywood panels on the ceiling. These panels are part of the building’s hybrid structural system, which also includes steel. In addition to its aesthetic qualities, the panel materials were fabricated in Oregon by Freres Engineered Wood using wood originating from the company’s sustainably-managed forests, reducing the project’s carbon footprint.
The building, targeting LEED Silver certification, will also serve as a living laboratory, with exposed mechanical and HVAC systems and sustainability features putting learning on display.
With the structure now complete, crews from Lease Crutcher Lewis and our trade partners have moved into the interior-finishes stage. The mechanical, engineering and plumbing trades are wrapping up installations and are starting trim-out. Concurrently, we’re installing casework and flooring. Painting is next. Work on the exterior is also progressing, with the building’s skin nearing completion and site improvements and landscaping underway.
With the first cohorts getting set to experience ITEC this winter, LCC is poised to signifcantly contribute to the region’s workforce for decades to come. Without question, many of these well-trained graduates will play key roles at Lease Crutcher Lewis’ future projects in the region.